November 19, 2018

NM near bottom of wage growth over last year, since Great Recession

New Mexico’s personal wage growth continues to lag behind the country as a whole and the region.

U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, analysis by the Pew Charitable Trusts.

The latest numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, compiled by the Pew Charitable Trusts, shows that through the 2nd quarter of 2018, New Mexico’s personal income has grown just 1.1 percent since the Great Recession. That’s compared the national average of 1.9 percent.

Looking at just the most recent year, through the end of the 2nd quarter of 2018, New Mexico also saw just a 1.1 percent growth.

The West is home to many states with the largest growth rates, both since 2007 and in the most recent year. This included Utah, Colorado and Texas, New Mexico’s neighbors, which all saw personal income growth of more than 2.5 percent in both the last 11 years and in 2017.

Arizona, another of New Mexico’s neighbors, experienced just 1.6 percent growth since the Great Recession but 3 percent growth over the last year.

As the post by Pew says, these trends are important for many state governments because of the role of income taxes as revenue for the states. New Mexico, like nearly all states, requires a balanced budget each year.

The personal income data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis includes a number of income streams not just paychecks. It also includes Social Security benefits and health insurance and retirement benefits as well as money that’s made through property, including rent. It also includes benefits from public assistance programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.

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Public health orders restricting some businesses and public gatherings are slowly being lifted, but the New Mexico Supreme Court’s restrictions on eviction proceedings and limitations on civil cases in general are still in place.

Matthew Reichbach is the editor of the NM Political Report. The former founder and editor of the NM Telegram, Matthew was also a co-founder of New Mexico FBIHOP with his brother and one of the original hires at the groundbreaking website the New Mexico Independent. Matthew has covered events such as the Democratic National Convention and Netroots Nation and formerly published, “The Morning Word,” a daily political news summary for NM Telegram and the Santa Fe Reporter.